FLUSHING, N.Y. – Wrapping up their homestand on Wednesday evening, the Queens College women's volleyball team faced off against the Mercy University Mavericks in East Coast Conference action inside Fitzgerald Gymnasium.
In a tightly contested match that featured 18 ties and nine lead changes, senior outside hitter
Kendall Conrad (Carrolltown, PA) led the Knights with a team-high 11 kills. Despite their strong effort, Queens fell in straight sets to the Mavericks.
Match Recap: Queens: 0, Mercy 3 (Set Scores: 18-25, 24-26, 23-25)
The Knights opened the first set with a 4-1 lead, as Conrad and senior setter
Jayna Marie Lorenzo (Rodeo, CA) combined for two early kills.
However, the Mavericks responded with a 13-2 run to take a commanding 14-6 advantage. Trailing 18-9, a kill from senior middle blocker
Lindsay Osterhoudt (Orlando, Fla) sparked a 6-3 run for Queens, trimming the deficit to 21-15. Despite the push, Mercy closed out the set with a 25-18 win to take a 1-0 match lead.
The second set proved to be the most competitive of the night, featuring 12 ties and eight lead changes as the Knights battled to even the match. Led by the senior trio of Conrad, Lorenzo, and Osterhoudt, Queens jumped out to a 6-2 lead, forcing an early Mercy timeout.
The break helped the Mavericks regroup, and the teams began trading points. With Queens ahead 10-7, Mercy responded with a 7-2 run to take a 14-12 lead.
The Knights answered with a 4-1 surge, highlighted by blocks from Osterhoudt, Lorenzo, and senior middle blocker
Maya Angelova (Kyustendil, Bulgaria), to reclaim a slim 16-15 lead.
Mercy countered with a 4-0 run to pull ahead 19-16, but rookie setter
Kylynn White (Chicago, IL) and senior outside hitter
Elizabeth Cerullo (Saint James, N.Y.) fueled a 5-1 stretch as the Knights regained a 21-20 edge.
In the final moments, Mercy closed the set on a 6-3 run, edging Queens 26-24 to take a 2-0 match lead.
In the third set, the Knights fell behind 10-7, but a kill from White, another from Conrad, and a service ace by sophomore defensive specialist
Olivia Hyman (Forest Hills, N.Y.) leveled the score at 10-10.
A series of attacking errors hindered Queens, allowing Mercy to build a 20-15 lead with a 10-5 run. Osterhoudt and White responded with three combined kills and a service ace, helping the Knights close the gap to 21-19.
As Mercy reached match point with a 3-1 spurt, the Knights refused to back down. Conrad tallied two late kills to spark a 3-0 run, bringing Queens within one at 24-23. But a service error on the next point gave the Mavericks the final point they needed, securing a 25-23 win in the third set and completing the sweep.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Conrad paced the Knights' offense with 11 kills with one block, and one dig.
- White tallied a team-high 14 assists, seven kills, five digs, two blocks, and one service ace.
- Osterhoudt notched six kills, one block, and two service aces.
- Cerullo recorded four kills.
- Marie Lorenzo tallied 13 assists, five digs, three blocks, and three blocks.
- Angelova recorded four blocks and two kills.
- Sophomore libero Asuka Shibue (Tochigi, Japan) recorded a career-best 19 digs in the contest.
Next Match
The Knights will conclude the week on Sunday, October 18, with an East Coast Conference matchup against the St. Thomas Aquinas College Spartans in Sparkill, N.Y. First serve is set for 12:00 p.m.
For the latest news on Queens College Athletics, follow the Knights at queensknights.com or via social media on Facebook (Queens College Athletics), X (Formerly Twitter) (@QCKnights), and Instagram (qcknightsny), women's volleyball (qcknightsvb).
